Titanium
by fantasyDramaQuEEn44
Summary: Someone from Blackheart's past shows up after 8 years. Hearing of his defeat, she decides to pay the Rider a visit. Inspired by the song "Titanium"
1. Chapter 1

_Disclaimer: I do not own anything from Ghost Rider, only the following story and the characters of Titanium and Joanne._

Chapter 1

Titanium's POV

The tall lank female hidden in the shadows of a remote corner of hell watched the demons sloth by, her mutual distaste for Mephistopheles increasing substantially. He had absolutely no control over this pit and it sickened her; Blackheart would have been a better ruler. He had always boasted about going to earth and destroying his father by creating the one thing he never could; hell on earth. If she was not mistaken he was there at the moment attempting to accomplish that little goal with those three brainless oafs he had terrorised the school with; the three elementals. She looked down and let the golden locks form a curtain before her icy white/blue eyes, a smile playing on her blood red lips.

"Did you hear? _Blackheart_ got defeated by the Ghost Rider," the simple words caught Titanium's attention immediately and she quickly glanced up at the earth elemental...Gressel?... who was walking with the water elemental...Wallow?...

"Him too, hey?" Wallow snorted, "Stupid Ghost Rider. Stupid Mephistopheles." Her plucked eyebrows shot into her brow as she fully processed the information she had learnt. Blackheart had lost? Impossible. She had to find out for herself because rumours were highly unreliable most of the time, especially in such a place as hell, and it was highly unlikely that he would be defeated by a lesser being such as a silly Ghost Rider. Unless of course Mephistopheles had helped out, that was a completely different story but then that had to mean that Blackheart had been making headway. If Mephistopheles had _helped_ his favourite creation take his son down then he must have viewed Blackheart as an honest threat; the smile played on her lips again as she remembered the matches they'd had when they were younger.

'Let me investigate and find the truth behind this silly rumour, if there is any,' Titanium silently thought as she pushed herself off the wall and made her way down the corridor, her black thigh high boots clicking on the stone floor. Numerous heads turned in her direction as she practically glided to her destination, her skin tight leather one piece hugging her sculpted legs tightly with each long stride.

"Titanium!" the rumbling voice made her cringe inwardly as she came to an unwilling stop, turning to face Mephistopheles.

"Yes?" By rights he had no control over her because she was not one of his brainless minions and that irritated him, that she knew for a fact. She also knew that he would have loved to control her in more than one way but she refused to be manipulated; she was not one to take orders very easily. Most of the time Titanium travelled alone and the only person she had actually every socialised with had been Blackheart, mostly only battling with him. They were rivals but she had always found that she had been attracted to him in more ways than one...Titanium abruptly cut the thought off, not wanting to delve into those memories. That was another thing that irritated Mephistopheles making him dislike his son even more; Titanium willingly socialised with him even if it was only to fight whether physically or verbally.

"I have not seen you around for a while," he commented smoothly as he circled her, his cane tapping on the floor as he moved. Titanium narrowed her long ebony lashed eyes as she followed his each movement; the last time she had shown her face in hell was eight years ago when she had left high school. That had also been the last time she had seen Blackheart...

"I've been busy," she replied shortly, impatiently. Mephistopheles came to a halt in front of her a frown set deeply into his wrinkled face.

"What could a lady like you be up to?" worlds such as those were meant to charm but they only repulsed her even more; the man was completely and utterly sick.

"Private business that does not concern you," Titanium said the words with as much venom as she could. She had no idea why she had returned to hell anyway, she had no business there but something had told her to come back and she figured it had something to do with what she had just heard. Perhaps she had just wanted to see Blackheart. She had an annoying habit of allowing her thoughts to wonder to him, his well-being and what he could possibly be up to. Numerous times she had seen or heard of odd, unexplainable occurrences which she had automatically linked back to him though she could never have been completely sure it was his doing.

"I see," his eyes had narrowed sufficiently and she allowed a smirk to flit briefly onto her face; she enjoyed getting on his nerves.

"And I have important business to see to now, so if you'll excuse me," Titanium tried to walk around him but he immediately stepped in front of her. She could feel her patience running short and she ground her teeth together, fisting her hands by her side.

"My son is currently unavailable," Mephistopheles said pointedly with a warning clear in his voice.

"How nice for him," she replied smoothly with a fake smile plastered on her face; there was no way she would let Mephistopheles come between her and her visit with Blackheart. She would see him whether he was unavailable or not. The thought suddenly came to him that Mephistopheles might actually have destroyed him completely; it made her heart quake in fear and she suddenly felt desperate to find him.

"I must go," this time Titanium pressed passed him and practically shot down the corridor. She tried to look only as if she were in a rush and not eager to get to her destination, she wanted him to know nothing of her current "business". Titanium slowed down as she approached Blackheart's room; her heart springing into her throat as butterflies broke free in her stomach. She was uncertain of what to do next, it had been a while since she had spoken to or seen him and she did not know if she could simply just enter as she always had. Deciding that it would add an edge yet also some familiarity to their reunion, she quietly slipped into the dark interior.

Blackheart's POV

Blackheart paced around his room in utter frustration wondering how and where he had messed up. How had he let the Ghost Rider defeat and embarrass him so badly? Now his father had an even bigger ego to him and on top of that he, Blackheart, was without a single power; another one of his many punishments for his supposed "disobedience". The thought enraged him and he found that he needed a way to reclaim his former glory and the only way to do so was to defeat his father and that ridiculous, pathetic Ghost Rider of his. As a form of comfort, his father had not been left without embarrassment either because apparently his favourite creation had snubbed him. A smirk played on Blackheart's lips at the thought of his father being snubbed.

"You're unnaturally restless," the satin soft yet seductive voice sent a shiver down his spine; how had he not heard her enter? Apparently she was just as quiet as she had been before and just as sneaky.

"It's unwise to sneak-up on me," Blackheart did not bother turning, he was aware of her presence and if she tried anything he would have more than enough time to counter. It suddenly hit him that he had not seen Titanium in eight years; why had she suddenly returned to hell after she swore never to come back? In truth he was a bit relieved that she had come back; she had been one of the few he could actually converse constructively with even if it was through the verbal tiffs they use to have.

"I always have," he could almost hear the smirk in Titanium's voice. Blackheart turned slowly to face her and wondered how much she had heard from the demons about his defeat; if she had heard anything at all.

"Touché," Blackheart allowed himself to smirk as he took her in fully; she had not changed much from their last meeting. Perhaps she had a little more make-up on but her attitude and physique was still almost identical.

"I heard how Ghost Rider crushed your dreams of world domination," Titanium's smirk only grew as she spoke the words and Blackheart flinched inwardly, "I didn't know how true the rumours were so I decided to follow them up."

"Most of what you heard is probably true," Blackheart spoke with bitterness as he turned his back to her again; she would know about his powerless state then. He had secretly hoped that he would have been able to redeem himself before Titanium heard of his defeat but obviously fate had other plans.

"You were defeated by such a lesser being? How could you? That's not the Blackheart I knew and used to battle," Titanium's words were meant to taunt him and he was barely able to hold his temper back, "what happened to your natural competitiveness? You don't let people run over you."

"I made a few unwise decisions," Blackheart replied shortly without turning to face her again; he could not, would not, let her see how embarrassed and ashamed that flaming skull had left him. He needed to get revenge but that was impossible in his current state; yes he would have had the element of surprise but he could do little else without any of his former abilities.

"In other words, you became too egotistical? Over eager?" Blackheart flinched at how well she read him; her knowledge was probably from past experience. If there was anyone that knew him and his tendencies it was Titanium and the same could be said vice versa. Yes, they were rivals but they were closer than either of them wanted to admit. Both knew that they enjoyed the other's competitive company and interesting little fights but they would be un-damned if they were to admit it.

"Loss of strategy was always your weakness, Blackheart," it seemed as though she was approaching him and he turned to face her; she still moved as fluidly as she used to. Titanium would be able to put any demon to shame, competing with him on his level of strength. That was the only reason hell had accepted her in the first place. Naturally, Titanium was a metal-controller from another planet in some other far off galaxy who had accidentally arrived on earth approximately fifteen years ago. Blackheart had come across her and challenged her to battle sensing strange abilities; after a drawn out match he came to the conclusion that she would be a useful add-on to hell's ranks. Mephistopheles had easily given in when he heard about her abilities and had been trying to manipulate her ever since, never actually succeeding.

'She would have been a useful sidekick for my little earth expedition,' Blackheart thought, where she made-up for his loss of strategy he made-up for her lack of physical strength. If only he had been able to track her down but she had literally vanished from existence; hadn't he known better he would have thought she had never existed yet here she was now, standing before him and taunting him once more.

"Perhaps so," Blackheart would not fully admit how correct she was, what was left of his ego would not allow it.

"Where is this Ghost Rider?" Titanium abruptly changed the subject but Blackheart saw nothing odd about it, he was to absorbed by bitterness to realise anything.

"I don't know," he could not care less about the whereabouts of the object of his misery. For all he cared the Ghost Rider could have migrated to the moon and been run over by metal controllers like Titanium.

"Where last did you see him?" Titanium sounded as if she was getting impatient and he frowned; a fight would not be wise at the moment. He could do nothing if she attacked and this annoyed him further; he was completely at her mercy.

"San Van Ganza," Blackheart replied truthfully, it had been the last place he had encountered the Rider, place of his defeat, "Why?" he was still completely uninterested.

"I'd like to see who your defeater was," Titanium cocked her head to one side, the smirk still plastered on her full red lips. Blackheart did not question her motives and did not for a moment consider the fact that she might have ulterior reasons for going after the Rider. Why would she? She probably enjoyed seeing him suffer from the embarrassment of his defeat.

"Suit yourself," Blackheart merely shrugged and silence filled the room once more. After several moments he turned to face her but found the room was empty, the door slightly ajar. He felt a frown pull at the sides of his mouth; he was hoping she would have stayed a little while longer. Blackheart did not know when and if he would see Titanium again; the chances were scarce because she had a mind of her own and probably wanted to find a way to get home.

"Home," Blackheart murmured as an odd sense of disappointment surrounded him, "millions of light-years from here." If she went home then he would never see her again, never fight with her again. Blackheart tried to shrug the feeling off; it was her choice if she wanted to go home plus he could not care less about her decisions. At least, that's what he kept telling himself...

Titanium's POV

Though his information had been practically useless, Titanium flapped her powerful black wings as hard and as fast as she could. She needed to reach San Van Ganza as quickly as she could where she would attempt to track the Rider down; she wanted to pay him a visit. The sky was an inky black with remnants of the sunset evident on the red splattered horizon, night time was perfect for her to track him down because he would probably be active in his Rider "duties". On her way out of hell she had heard one of the demons name the Rider: Johnny Blaze he had said. The name and his last known location was all she had to track him down; no physical description, no address, nothing that was absolutely solid.

"Finding the Rider might be difficult," she murmured but she would do it, she was determined enough, angry enough, to achieve it. Titanium hated the fact that Mephistopheles had used the Rider to take his own son down; only SHE, Titanium, was allowed to do that. He had always been a push-over dad toward Blackheart, completely controlling and she had always been utterly sick of his antics but this definitely took the cake. What Mephistopheles had done was the last straw and now it was up to Titanium to bring it all to end; she would start with the Rider and then she would move on to the devil himself. Blackheart would achieve his goal even if it was through her If only she had been present when he had first attempted his goal, then he would have succeeded.

"I'll make up for it," Titanium hissed through clenched teeth. Of course, Blackheart would know nothing of her plans until he could take over from his father and she could quietly disappear; if she had it her way Blackheart would never know it was her in the first place. That was how she preferred it... though she knew she cared for him more than she should she could not help it; he had saved her from being homeless and had never left her alone even if it was just for the "friendly" battles they shared. Letting him know though was dangerous, Titanium knew just how manipulative Blackheart could be if he found something to his advantage. She had to let him think that he had no control over her, that she was not doing him any favours...the result of him finding out could be disastrous. Though it hurt to do so she knew it was a necessity; he would never return the feeling. Never.

"Get over it," she snapped harshly as she shook her head. She flapped her wings even harder than before forcing herself to her extreme; it was a nice relief from the slight heartache she was starting to develop. A dangerous weakness that she could not afford. It would be better if she accomplished her plans and then disappeared to her home planet forever; eventually she would forget and move on. Eventually.

"Destroy it with anger," Titanium ordered and tried to fill herself with as much rage as possible. She had to stamp it out. It suddenly came to her attention that she was flying along a highway and just below her was a blue bus with a trailer; it was one of those private tour busses the earthly superstars usually owned. Out of curiosity she swooped down toward it and gently landed on the roof with a light _clang_. Titanium pressed her ear against the roof of the bus and heard numerous men chattering, probably under the influence of alcohol, as they played a game of poker. She could hear a television set rambling some sort of nonsense while two other people conversed, it was this conversation that she tuned in on.

"I'm telling you, Johnny, you're even more popular than before! They love it!" the voice belonged to an excited female.

"I'm a monster but they love it?" a male replied incredulously, "What is it with people on earth?"

"They're saying that's why you're such a good stunt rider," The female replied and Titanium noticed she had stiffened, with good reason too; the male's name was Johnny and he was a professional stunt rider.

"Lemme guess, they want me to change my name from _Blaze_ to _The Ghost Rider_?" Johnny sounded bored and did not seem to actually like the idea. Titanium did not bother listening to the conversation any further; she had found her target without any amount of difficulty. That had to a be a sign; fate was definitely on her side if the Rider had been handed to her without her even starting her search.

"It is time to start," Titanium shot off the bus's roof, catapulting herself a little way ahead of it before she landed in its path on the road. She watched the driver's eyes stretch as he hurriedly pressed down on the brakes causing the bus to skid, turning sideways before it came to a screeching halt before her.

"Are you mad?" the driver screamed out the window before he turned to the back, "Sorry guys, crazy chick in the road." Titanium narrowed her eyes as she stepped toward the bus with determination; no man had the right to call her crazy, never mind a "chick". She flexed her fingers as her nails turned to diamond; she was one of the lucky few who could control a gemstone as well as a metal. With as much power as she could, Titanium stabbed her nails into the driver's door ripping it off its hinges.

"What the hell? Are you INSANE?" he tried desperately to get out the other side but she ripped him from the interior and hurled him into the road. Without a single word, Titanium summoned her metal to wrap around him, pressing him tightly against the side of the bus. The commotion was enough to catch the Rider's attention because he and his mates came tumbling out of the bus, pausing to take in the situation before them.

"What the-," the only female between them muttered, her hazel eyes stretching. This must have been the female the demons had been speaking of, the Rider's accomplice.

"Which of you is the Rider?" Titanium turned to them, a dangerously calm look plastered on her face.

"That would be me. Who the hell are you?" a male probably in his late thirties stepped forward and Titanium could only stare; how had _he _defeated Blackheart? Burning rage enveloped her once more as she came to the conclusion that he had probably had extra help, unfair help.

"Titanium," she replied coldly as she flexed her muscles, it was time to bring an end to this pathetic living being, "how dare you? How dare you come between him and his goal? How could you help his disgusting father prolong his unworthy reign?"

"What are you talking about?" the Rider looked honestly confused as he stepped a little forward; he looked ready for a fight and Titanium allowed herself to smile briefly; he knew what was coming.

"Blackheart," as the name rolled between her lips she watched both the Rider and his female accomplice stiffen visibly. He glanced behind him and they shared a similar look of horror.

"He sent you to get revenge on me?" the Rider looked at her once more.

"He sent me to do nothing," Titanium snapped, "he and I are rivals."

"Then why are you here to get revenge for him?" his female accomplice stepped forward and for a moment Titanium was dumbstruck; how could she reply to such a question? There was no way she could tell them the truth behind her motives but what else could she tell them?

"No one but me is allowed to take him on," she finally decided on the answer enforcing it with venom and utter rage, "he may have made a few mistakes but you will not have that luck with me." She allowed them to say nothing more as she summoned two of her diamond swords and lunged at the Rider. He immediately flamed up and sprung out of the way, ordering his crew to move to safety. They hurtled into the bus making her smirk; that was the biggest mistake they could have made. Titanium extended her hand and closed her fist watching the bus begin to close in on itself; the metal bending as if a force was being exerted on it from every angle. The piercing scream of his female accomplice rang through the air and the Rider reacted immediately, he pulled the chain from the trailer and swung it toward her. Titanium sprung into the air swinging her leg toward the chain so it wrapped tightly around; immediately she recognised the look of triumphant the Rider got.

'He does not know my strategies,' she thought as she landed, 'let me inform him.' With speed that would alarm even the fastest athlete, she spun on her heels ripping the chain from the Rider's hands as it wrapped around her. With similar speed, she began to spin in the opposite direction sending the chain flying right back at him and he was barely able to miss the blurred missile. Using the distraction to her advantage, Titanium sprung at him with a diamond sword poised before her. As if luck was on his side, the Rider turned just in time and his arm deflected the attack as it collided with her sword. She was sent flying, rolling across the dirt and for a moment was forced to stay still out of shock. The Rider immediately launched himself at the bus which was still being crushed and started to rip at the metal; one by one his crew climbed from the death trap.

"You-," Titanium hissed as she sprung up, swords clasped tightly in her hands. The games were over and it was time to get down to serious business. Once more she lunged herself at the Rider who still had his back to her.

"Johnny! Watch out!" the female squealed as Titanium closed in on him. The Rider swung around as all hell broke loose. Almost literally too.

Blackheart's POV

Blackheart was busy pacing around his room when Abigor, Gressel and Wallow suddenly burst in with looks of shock and surprise on their faces.

"No offense, master, but are you utterly off your head?" Gressel asked incredulously as they came to a screeching halt before him. He took all three of them in with utter contempt; they had absolutely no curtsy, manners or sense of respect.

"Yeah, why the hell did you send Titanium to earth? Mephistopheles is going off _his _head!" Abigor added, "he's on his way here now!" the words sent shockwaves through Blackheart as he processed the information; Titanium had gone to earth? Why? Their previous conversation returned to him like a punch in the gut and he suddenly realised why she had been so curious about the Rider's position; she had gone to earth to confront him. Why else would she want to find him?

"I did not send her to earth. For whatever reason she is there, it is her own," he replied swiftly. His mind was trying to figure out why she would take revenge on the Rider if he, Blackheart, was her rival and enemy. His three mindless goons had no time to reply because Mephistopheles appeared in the middle of the room in a puff of black smoke; his face was twisted in utter rage.

"Before you say anything; I did not send her to earth," Blackheart said flatly; he had no patience for his father's fights at the moment.

"Then why is she there?" Mephistopheles demanded angrily as he slammed his cane into the floor.

"Why don't you ask her?" Blackheart replied venomously, "I don't control the girl and even less so do I know what goes on in her head. I haven't even seen her in eight years!"

"She was here before she went to earth," it was not a question but Blackheart still treated it as one, nodding curtly as an answer, "you have something to do with this! Your disobedience is pathetic! Can you not accept that you _will not_ win?"

"Think about it; why would my enemy do me such a favour as to wipe your ridiculous creation out of existence?" Blackheart asked logically as he crossed his arms. That very question had him completely confused with no means of finding an answer unless, of course, he had to confront her.

"You will go to earth and drag her back down here for interrogation. You have a week. And to make sure you do not do _other_ things you will work with the Rider," Mephistopheles said firmly, he knew that Blackheart was the only one who could possibly successfully drag her back to hell. He got the feeling that she was much easier to manipulate if it was Blackheart who was doing it because she definitely wanted to be more than just rivals with him. The thought sickened Mephistopheles so before he could voice it he disappeared in a cloud of black smoke, leaving the four demons dumbfounded.

"Are you actually going to listen to him?" Abigor turned to Blackheart after a moment of uncomfortable silence. Already an idea was forming in his head and he smirked inwardly; he would get the perfect revenge on the Rider and his father. And it was all thanks to Titanium that he could get his plan started. Her antics, with reasons unknown to him, had forced his father to return his abilities.

"For now," Blackheart replied mysteriously as he felt the familiar surge of power.

"What's the plan, boss?" Gressel got a familiar glint in his eyes as he took a step toward Blackheart.

"Follow his orders for now," Blackheart smirked as he started to disappear into the cloud of darkness that was surrounding him. When he dragged Titanium back to hell he would have to remind himself to thank her for allowing his new plan to become possible. Perhaps he would set her free after the interrogation as a thank you gift; after that he could not care less what happened to her. He would have the hell and earth to run then and would have no time for their petty fights. Maybe he would enslave her... such thoughts would only be continued at a later stage and he instead concentrated on getting the first part of his plan rolling. An all too familiar scene suddenly appeared before him and he took a moment to absorb the fresh night air; if he was not mistaken this was the road that led to San Van Ganza.

"Johnny! Watch out!" Roxanne's all too familiar voice made Blackheart turn to see, just in time, as Titanium launched herself at him, diamond sword poised before her. He sped forward and grabbed her from mid-flight; wrapping his arms around her waist as he pulled her tightly against his chest. Time froze after that moment as Titanium suddenly became completely rigid in his arms, her eyes blanking over. The world around her suddenly became black as snippets of memories overwhelmed her shocked mind. His embrace felt all too familiar, his chest a hard yet comfortable force against her back and she was transported back to the night of her graduation. Desire mixed with rage filled her already confused mind as images of caresses, skin against skin, and satin embraces harassed her senses. Heated, violent kisses spurred the passion of the memory and she remembered a brief pressure deep within her most secret core before the world around her had shattered in utter ecstasy as love competed with hate, passion with anger and desire with pain. The memory faded into insignificance leaving her feeling weak, breathless and overrun with emotions she would rather have forgotten along with that night so many years ago.

'I must compose myself,' was her first rational thought after a long moment but doing so would be increasingly difficult. Somewhere deep within she was able to find enough strength to swing her swords around so the hilts were firmly in her hands. With as much force as she could muster, she drove them into Blackheart's upper core; the battle would change drastically now because he knew most of her moves. How had he found out? Why had he come? He let go of her briefly and she attempted to grab a hold of his arm but he was one step ahead, grabbing hers instead. With all his physical strength, Blackheart hurled her over his back and into a broken down stone wall in the distance. Titanium hit it with such force that it broke further and she was left motionless on the floor; this worried him slightly. She did not normally fumble and make such silly mistakes; something must have affected her negatively and was still distracting her. Putting the thought aside, Blackheart moved toward her and grabbed her by the throat, lifting her off the ground.

"What are you doing here?" he demanded as emotionlessly as he could.

"Screw you," Titanium spluttered as she drove the short metal dagger into his forearm. He had barely let go of her when she summoned her wings and shot into the darkness of the night sky disappearing from his sight.

"Titanium!" Blackheart bellowed after her but he got no reply. Apparently it was going to be a lot harder to capture her than he had originally planned. That, unfortunately, meant that he would have to spend more time around the Rider because, if her idea had been revenge, she would return for him. That thought confused him though, if she had come to take the Rider on because of his defeat over Blackheart, why had she reacted negatively toward him? Treated him like the enemy?

'She may ask you why you stopped her,' Blackheart considered this for a moment; obviously she would expect him to sort of be on her side when it came to defeating the Rider. His interference in her attack might have startled her enough to scramble her thought and forced her to consider him the enemy which he was to her anyway. As he turned to the shocked Rider and his crew he came to a single conclusion; Titanium confused him and he did not like it one bit.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Titanium's POV

Titanium pressed her head against the cool concrete wall surrounding the roof of the skyscraper she had landed on and let out a heavy sigh. She had been able to escape for the moment while she attempted to collect her thoughts and compose herself. Never had she expected Blackheart to find out about her fight with the Rider never mind interrupt it; even if he had found out she would have expected him to support her or even help her fight. Though they were naturally rivals they agreed on that one point; the Rider needed to go down and the fact that he had protected him confused her already rampant mind even more. That thought was not what she concentrated on though, it was that of the memories she had experienced when he had grabbed her. Memories she had kept locked away since the night had happened, memories she had successfully forgotten about. Until tonight.

"How could you lose control?" Titanium shrieked at herself as she grabbed her hair and pulled it with all her might. Hot tears broke through the barrier she was unsuccessfully trying to keep intact and she stumbled backward, pressing her back against the cement wall. The barrier was hard and cold against her skin, reminding her once more of that night. The memories flooded into her head again and she cried out as she fell to the floor.

"Stop! Stop it!" the vision before her made her blind to her surroundings as she lashed out with her swords trying to destroy the wispy illusions which were just out her reach, mocking her. After countless attempts of trying to stab them she sunk slowly to the floor. The cool concrete floor seemed to welcome her as she wept, a refreshing feeling against the burning sensation which consumed her. The sobs started to slowly subside and with them the painful memories allowing her to finally gain control over her distraught mind. Slowly, as not to pain her already burning head, she lifted herself off the floor and took in the calm night around her. It was intoxicating, calming her immensely as she allowed her senses to be engulfed. She had always preferred the peace of the night to the busy, shuffling noise of the bright and terrible day.

"The plan will be completed," Titanium murmured with determination, making sure she was perfectly composed once more, "the Rider will go down." She spread her wings and took off into the night, ready to take him on once more. All she needed was the right plan and she had an idea where she could possibly begin with one.

Blackheart's POV

"What the hell is going on?" was the first thing the Rider demanded when Blackheart finally rejoined them. It was a bit of an awkward situation; it had not been too long ago that they had been on earth together except then they were fighting one another. For now, it had to be peace between them until Titanium was caught and brought back to hell. Perhaps the Rider would be willing to help, he was the perfect bait and who knew: maybe he would die in the process?

"You were attacked," Blackheart replied shortly, stating the obvious. He had no idea how he would stand working with the Rider until he caught Titanium. He had to do it fast.

"I know that," he snapped in return, "who the hell was she? And why the hell did you stop her?"

"Do you know her?" Roxanne butted in before Blackheart could even think of replying. He wanted to stare at her icily but decided against it; he would get his revenge later.

"Her name is Titanium," Blackheart would literally only give them the bare bones of the information, that was all he felt they deserved, "yes I know her, she use to reside in hell some eight years back. She's an extra-terrestrial being with the ability to control both the metal titanium and diamond."

"Oh my-," Roxanne started but Johnny cut her off.

"Don't," Johnny whispered and she shut her mouth immediately, there was no point in making Blackheart aggressive. He returned his attention to Blackheart and continued, "Why did you stop her? We're enemies."

"Would you rather I left you, Rider?" Blackheart hissed though he agreed with the Rider's statement. He would rather not have stopped Titanium; his first thought, however, had been to apprehend her and drag her back to hell. He now cursed himself for not letting her do what she had wanted to; it would have saved him a lot of trouble.

"No, but I am curious as to why you saved me," the words felt strange saying them to the devil's son who had, not so long ago, tried to kill him.

"My father sent me here to drag her back to hell," Blackheart replied shortly before continuing, it was better to get the embarrassment over with, "he believes I sent her to take revenge on you. I told him I didn't but he still thinks it's my responsibility to drag her back for interrogation."

"And how do you plan on doing that? She just flew off," Johnny folded his arms, quite intrigued by the whole matter. He had his lucky stars to thank that Blackheart had not had this Titanium woman as an accomplice, that would have made his defeat a lot more difficult if not completely impossible.

"She'll come back for you if her plan was revenge," he said with a sinister smile, "so until she does I guess I'll just have to follow you everywhere." He would fail to mention that his father had ordered him to stay with the Rider, that was just too embarrassing to even comprehend and he had to keep even a little of his dignity.

"And if it wasn't?" Roxanne replied defiantly.

"Why else would she attack him?" Blackheart asked coldly.

"It could have been a random-," Roxanne shouted but he quickly cut her off.

"The attack was not random. She enquired about the Rider's whereabouts and it was just after I told her what I knew that she came up here to attack him," he replied smugly, wiping the confidence from her as quickly as she had been able to build it up.

"I agree," Johnny replied as he frowned, " I don't like the idea of you following me around but if you want to catch her I guess you'll just have to."

"Johnny! No! I don't trust him any further than I can throw him!" Roxanne swung to face him, ignoring the fact that Blackheart was standing right there. Not that he cared any less for her hateful words.

"He saved my life, Roxanne," Johnny replied rather sternly, "plus, I doubt he has any ulterior motives, right?" Johnny's light blue eyes flitted to Blackheart's expressionless face.

"I have none," he replied as honestly as possible, _'yet...'_ he silently added to himself as he smirked in his mind's eyes; the Rider had yet to learn of how conniving he could actually be.

"Roxanne, we'll be fine," Johnny reassured her with a flighty hug, "when Titanium is caught everything will go back to normal." Roxanne still did not seem to like the idea but merely shrugged in reply, she was not going to win that fight. Everyone turned their attention back to the crushed bus which stood pitifully before them, nothing more than a squashed metal creation.

"How are we going to get home?" one of the crew members asked one of the most obvious questions. Blackheart remained a little behind refusing to offer his ability to teleport as a means of transport to the Rider's residence. He would still make life difficult, if not almost unbearable for them, it was just a part of who he was.

"We could always phone Joanne," Roxanne offered, "she could bring the minivan." Johnny nodded and quickly flipped his mobile out of his pocket. Blackheart thought it was slightly old-fashioned for someone with as much money as the Rider, he was quite well off if he wasn't mistaken. The conversation between him and the mysterious Joanne was short and to the point, apparently the woman was not impressed with having to drive so far out at this time of the night. Without a word, he disappeared into the night and appeared in the Rider's house as the front door shut with a final slam.

"So Joanne resides with the Rider?" he commented quietly to himself as he took in his surroundings. The room he was in was neatly furnished, inexpensively but with evident taste that was probably all thanks to the lovely Roxanne. Next to the window was a LCD television on a cherry wood wall unit with a Persian-styled rug thrown out before it. The sofa was a soft pink colour with two matching chairs on either side and a small cherry wood coffee table in the middle on the actual rug. The walls were an off-white colour with scattered paintings, the scenes ranging from galloping horses to seaside scenes. Off to the right was the lemon coloured kitchen and behind him was a passage that probably led off to the bedrooms and the bathroom.

"Very nice, Rider," Blackheart commented to himself, "you hid all this from me?" he decided to get a good feel of his surroundings and started down the corridor which was the same off-white colour as the lounge. To his right was a closed door with a colourful sign on it which read: JOANNE, to his left was the open door to a bathroom which was themed in a light blue with dolphins literally plastered everywhere. At the end of the hall was the main bedroom which was themed in crimson with panelled walls and a carpeted floor. It was an inexpensive house but still highly stylish. A picture to the right caught his attention; it was of a pretty young woman with pin-straight, ear-length, chocolate coloured hair and large crystal blue eyes rimmed in long ebony lashes. Her naturally pale lips were curled into a full smile and her cheeks were a light pink from a natural blush.

"Joanne?" Blackheart crossed his arms as he studied the picture, "Who are you?" he took a final look at the picture before sauntering back to the lounge to wait for the Rider to arrive at home. It took approximately an hour or so for that to happen. Blackheart used that time in which to think of the reasons why Titanium would want to seek revenge when she was unaffected by his defeat. Any possible reasons still alluded him and he felt even more determined to track her down and interrogate her. Blackheart knew that both tasks would be difficult, bending on impossible, but he knew it had to be done. If only he knew what one of her possible weaknesses was...

"Where did he go?" Roxanne's voice became audible from outside and Blackheart snapped back into attention.

"He probably teleported ahead of us," Johnny replied. The lock in the front door opened with a click and Blackheart took that as his cue to sink quietly into the shadows. The Rider entered first followed by Roxanne and then lastly the woman he recognized from the picture in the hallway; Joanne. Though she was very plain to an extent she had a certain aura about her that made her attractive, drew a person in to her.

"If he'd offered or you guys had asked him, you wouldn't have needed to make me drive alone so late at night. You know it makes me nervous," Joanne commented stiffly as she pressed passed the other two and disappeared down the hallway. Blackheart felt slightly amused by the scene, whoever Joanne was she did not seem pleased with the Rider and his ever faithful hang-on.

"I knew that would happen," Roxanne whispered softly as she looked at her feet, she seemed deeply affected by Joanne's reaction. The Rider did not reply, he merely stared after her with soft blue eyes layered with concern. Again Blackheart wondered who Joanne was and how she was connected to the two people he saw before him. Silence ensued as they too departed down the hallway and the lounge was showered in darkness. Blackheart stepped forward into the now spread shadow, engrossed in his thoughts. The room became noticeable windy and he sharpened his senses, seeing as no windows or doors were open that could only mean Abigor was coming to visit.

"Blackheart," Abigor's familiar rasping voice broke the silence. He did not turn to face the element which had served him previously, there was no need to do so. After a moment, Abigor continued, "Mephistopheles wants an update."

"I located Titanium but she managed to escape me," Blackheart answered shortly, he was irritated by the fact that his father was going to keep checking on him. It was completely unnecessary and very inconvenient not to mention highly embarrassing on his part. Abigor did not reply but instead vanished restoring the eerie calmness in the lounge. Light was suddenly thrown through the room as Joanne entered and flicked the switch.

"Holy shiz!" the girl grabbed her chest as her eyes widened in shock, she had not been expecting to see anyone, probably even less so him. She continued by asking, "Blackheart, right?" he did not answer her question but merely stared emotionlessly at her.

"OK, I take that as a yes," Joanne now seemed unconcerned and sauntered past him into the kitchen, apparently the Rider had explained the situation to her. For some strange reason, Blackheart followed her. She asked him, "Can I get you anything?" He had expected her to be as cold as Roxanne and the Rider were but she was much more calm and accepting, friendly even, toward him.

"I'm fine," was all he said in reply and she nodded in acceptance, bustling about as she made herself something to drink.

"You know, those two are so damn uptight and expect me to jump at their every beck and call no matter how inconvenient it is for me," Joanne started speaking, her voice filled with annoyance, "I mean I know they were stranded and all but really, they know how much I hate driving alone at night. You never know what could happen in such a crime-ridden place!" All Blackheart could do was stare at her, he would never have expected her to start a conversation with him no matter how kind she was acting. The fact shocked him and he wanted even more to know who she was.

"And this isn't the first time, you know," Joanne turned to look at him, she was treating him as though they had known each other for years and the fact that he was the devil's son didn't seem to bother her at all, "They are always calling on me! I know they're my folks and all but sometimes I need my privacy so I can do things I want to do! You know what really pisses me off though?" Silence fell and Blackheart realised she expected an answer from him.

"What?" he willingly obliged, this was a manner in which to gather useful information about the Rider.

"I haven't even known my father for almost sixteen out of my eighteen years of being alive! _Sixteen!_ And now my mom just thinks I will invite him into _my _home with open arms? I think not!" Joanne huffed as she turned on her heel and proceeded with making herself something to drink. That little titbit of information was quite interesting; the Rider had a daughter he had not known of, something Roxanne had probably failed to contact him about.

"I'm sorry, I barely know you and here I am ladling you with my problems," Joanne laughed awkwardly as she turned to face Blackheart again, this time with a steaming mug in her hands, "I tend to go off a bit when I get angry at them."

"Don't we all?" Blackheart smirked, befriending his overly kind daughter would definitely be beneficial in the future. Who knew what weaknesses and useful information she could disclose to him? Perhaps he could even use her to capture Titanium...but how?

"Too true," she gave him an ear to ear grin as she sipped the liquid from the mug. They were quiet for a while before she suddenly asked him a rather random question, "Would you mind telling me more about this chick that attacked him? I didn't really get many details which I find a little unfair seeing as I had to drag them home." Blackheart took a moment to decide if it would be dangerous in any way to disclose such information to her. He doubted it, they did not seem to have a close relationship with their rather rebellious daughter.

"Her name is Titanium. She used to reside in hell and attended the same high school as I did, we were mostly enemies. We fought one another to see who was stronger but no one ever won so it was more of a casual combat. She has the ability to control the metal titanium and also diamond," he did not wish to go into their whole private history and knew nothing else factual about her, only a few personal things he had learnt over the years.

"I see," Joanne replied with wide, interested eyes, "where does she come from? Or was she always in hell?"

"She's an extra-terrestrial being, I found her wondering on earth and took her to hell," Blackheart replied before continuing, "she was willing to go." The look on Joanne's face had clearly said that she had been uncomfortable with the idea of Blackheart forcing Titanium to go to hell.

"Do you have any idea why she attacked my father?" Joanne questioned, it had perhaps occurred to her that he could possibly have sent Titanium. The same assumption his father and everyone else had made.

"No," Blackheart said it firmly, "that's why I'm here. To take her back to hell for interrogation."

"Forcefully?" Again she got a look of disdain and he could feel his temper flaring; if she continued being as soft as she was she would get run over numerous times in her life time. The girl had absolutely no back bone!

"Obviously," he retorted, "she won't come willingly."

"Can't you just find her and ask? Does there honestly need to be kidnapping and torturing?" Joanne whined, she apparently did not like the idea of any sort of violence. Blackheart could only feel sorry for her, she would not survive long in this world with such an attitude. Perhaps he could strengthen her a little while he was waiting for Titanium, it could not do any real harm to him. She was, after all, only a human.

"Titanium will not speak willingly," Blackheart replied softly, his eyes becoming unfocussed as he stared out into the darkness beyond the window. A brief, flitting movement outside caught his attention and immediately he shook himself to attention; what was out there?

"What? What do you see?" Joanne sounded slightly uncomfortable as she too attempted to see what he was looking at with such intensity. Would he, even for a second, let his hopes soar?

"Blackheart?" Joanne now sounded nervous yet also more insistent. He barely prevented himself from growling in frustration at her whining. Though she was kind and an easy target, Blackheart to admit that she was beyond just annoying.

"She's here," was all he said before he disappeared.

Joanne's POV

She stared at the spot he had been barely thirty seconds ago, her expression was completely blank as she attempted to process what he had told her. Due to her overtly caring and peaceful nature, Joanne disliked his abrupt and violent state of mind but she could barely blame him: it was as a result of the manner in which he was raised. Being the devil's son could definitely not be a piece of cake and she thought he had turned out quite well no matter how much her parent's bad-mouthed him or warned her of his evil and manipulative tendencies.

"Everyone deserves a fair chance," Joanne muttered to herself before she took another sip of the cocoa, "he has done me no harm as of yet and I will not judge him wrongly until he does. Maybe I can even change him." A sudden idea came to mind and she smiled with determination; before Blackheart left for hell she would make him see his gentler, more caring side.

"What's that cat-like smile for?" her mother had appeared out of nowhere, wrapped tightly in a fluffy white dressing gown.

"Nothing," Joanne replied rather coldly, she did not want her mother snooping in her plans. If that happened she might as well kiss her chances goodbye; if they even knew that she had been socializing with Blackheart there would be trouble.

"Look, Jo, you know we wouldn't have asked you to do that unless it was necessary," her mother centred herself in the middle of Joanne's view, trying desperately to get some sense spoken to her. She refused to listen; there HAD been other alternatives that they could have used but no, it was so much easier just to call on her.

"Save it," Joanne said sharply as she sauntered out of the kitchen and to her room; she would have to target Blackheart some other time. Hopefully there would be many occasions, enough so that she could actually accomplish her little plan.

'Trying to save the devil's son,' Joanne thought deviously as she got into bed and pulled the covers over her, 'how utterly fascinating.'

Titanium's POV

Titanium watched Blackheart move around outside the Rider's house obviously looking for the source of the movement he had seen earlier. He had spotted her when she had attempted to eavesdrop on the conversation he had been having with the unknown female. Who was she to the Rider? And why was Blackheart _conversing_ with _her_? A tinge of jealousy made Titanium frown as her icy eyes followed his silhouette shift through the garden; damn him for having the ability to make her feel such strong emotions.

'The quicker I am done here the quicker I can go home,' she thought. With his interference, there were a few new obstacles in the way but Titanium had successfully edited her plan to fit the new situation. Of course she needed just a little bit more information to make sure it would be efficient and accurate. She needed to know why he was intervening in the first place and how he had originally found out about her intentions. No doubt, Mephistopheles had something to do with it. Titanium frowned once more at the mere thought of him; she hated him. No, hate was too meek a word. She abhorred him.

"Titanium," Blackheart's voice broke through the silence of the night and flung her back to earth, her eyes dropped to his back, "I know you are still in this garden. Come out. Now." She restrained herself from snorting; of course he would go for a commanding tone as if it would make her obey him.

'Not today, Blackheart, and not ever!' Titanium thought as she kept her eyes glued to him, she needed to find the opportune moment to fly off. If she even dared to move now he would hear her and then she had no chance of successful escape. Minutes stretched by but still he grew no weaker in his search; he was apparently intent on finding her.

'Will you succeed?' she asked herself as he passed under the tree she was perched in. Her blood ran cold as Blackheart looked up into the branches, he narrowed his eyes and stared at the exact spot she was sitting for a couple of moments before walking away. Titanium let her guard down as she sighed in relief. She immediately regretted it. Blackheart was suddenly in front of her wrapping his cold fingers around her delicate throat. He shoved her harshly into the trunk as a smile played on his lips.

"Gotcha," was all he said before he teleported down into hell once more; thankfully his time with the Rider was now over. Titanium was caught. Hell materialised around them yet she still could not move; she was just too shocked. Blackheart took her to a plain room, completely empty except for a single chair and sat her down forcefully. Titanium watched him wide-eyed as black whip-like clouds surrounded her, tying her to the chair.

"Well, well," the sneer made shivers run up her spine and shook her from her shell-shocked state. Mephistopheles appeared from behind her, a greasy smile on his thin lips as he tapped his cane on the stone floor, "care to explain, dear?"

"Explain what?" Titanium spat venomously, "I need not explain anything to you."

"Feisty as always," Mephistopheles purred as he brought his face close to hers, breathing in her face. She tried to pull away but found it almost impossible with the binds attaching her to the chair, "you want to do it the hard way then?"

"I wish to do nothing in no way!" Titanium replied harshly. Out of the blue, Mephistopheles lifted his cane and brought it full force down, walloping her against the face. Her head jerked to the left, barely not breaking her neck as blood filled her mouth.

"You will reveal what your purpose was! Why did you seek revenge against my Ghost Rider?" Mephistopheles bellowed, slowly putting his staff firmly on the ground once more.

"Never," Titanium hissed, baring her teeth in an attempted snarl. Her cold eyes flitted to Blackheart and for a moment she despised him as much as she abhorred his father. How could he allow his father to smack her around?

'It proves how emotionless he is, how little he cares. A reminder that you cannot let him find out about your weakness toward him!' Titanium moved her eyes back to Mephistopheles; she needed to get out of hell soon or she would not make it out at all. He attempted to hit her again but this time she was accurately prepared; summoning a diamond cover to shield her from the blow. The cane snapped, the top bit falling loudly to the floor. Silence ensued as Mephistopheles stared in shock at the broken cane, his eyes flitting from one part to the other.

"You bitch," he looked up and she flinched inwardly; his face had distorted completely. His eyes were black orbs set in a starved face with pinched icy blue skin. Long yellow fangs extended from his dried and cracked lips as he launched himself at her, slamming her into the wall with such force that both the chair and the black clouds seemed to evaporate into nothing. A smirk spread onto Titanium's face as she summoned two of her trusty diamond swords and plunged them into Mephistopheles's heaving chest. He let out a throaty scream and stumbled back, the swords slipping out completely spotless, as he touched the holes in his chest. By the time both Blackheart and Mephistopheles turned their attention back to Titanium she was long gone, already soaring in the heavens over the earth. The cool air was a delicious relief from the burning/stinging pain which throbbed from her cheek through to the rest of head. Blood trickled through her pursed lips but she ignored it; her time for revenge would come soon enough and she could barely wait for it.

"You will fall the hardest," she promised as she dropped from the sky toward her new hideout. It was time to start, the sooner the better.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

Blackheart's POV

Blackheart watched his father heaving, the wounds in his chest gaping dangerously as he glared at the spot Titanium had been. He could feel the rage radiating from Mephistopheles and he hoped, for her sake, that she was going to lie low for a while.

"You useless demon," Mephistopheles suddenly struck out at Blackheart who moved hastily backwards, barely missing the attack, "because you are so damn useless I am left with no alternative but to destroy her when I find her. And I will find her!" all Blackheart could do was stare at the black clouds which were now in the spot his father had been mere seconds ago. He would have to act quickly if he was going to warn Titanium but how would he find her before his father did?

"The Rider," he muttered to himself. She would definitely try to strike again and though he did not like the idea, he would have to request the Rider's help in both drawing her out and apprehending her. Without further delay he teleported back to Johnny's residence and, although it was an obscene hour, he would be forced to wake them. It was to his luck that Joanne was still awake when he appeared in lounge. She swung around to face him, rubbing her arms vigorously.

"You could warn someone before you dropped the room temperature to below freezing," Joanne said sarcastically.

"Where is the Rider?" he demanded, ignoring her comment completely; it was unimportant at the moment.

"Asleep," her reply was bored as she studied her cuticle, oblivious to the fact that his patience was drawing extremely thin, "obviously."

"Fetch him," his order was short and to the point, said through clenched teeth. Joanne looked up at him with distaste plastered all over her face. She opened her mouth to say something in return but at the sight of his blackening eyes she quickly shut it and sped off down the passage. Blackheart allowed himself a quick smirk, that little trick always seemed to work on the humans.

"I don't know what it's about, he just told me to fetch you," he heard her voice long before she and muddled looking Rider appeared in the lounge.

"What's up?" he was still thick with sleep as he collapsed on the sofa, lazy blue eyes staring at Blackheart.

"I caught her and took her back but during the interrogation the little viper managed to manipulate my father into untying her, she stabbed him and disappeared again. Now he's on the warpath, intent on killing her," Blackheart explained rather quickly, time was running out. Fast. He could already feel his father's presence on earth, tearing the present natural balance into tiny shreds.

"So?" the Rider was slow to catch on, probably still trying to wake-up.

"You need to help me catch her," he replied stiffly, "and keep him away from her."

"And how am I supposed to do that?" Johnny's speech was slurred as he yawned, blinking lazily.

"You need to lure her out for me," another smirk played on Blackheart's lips, of course there would be a few consequences for the Rider. This time round he would not stop her if she attempted to kill him; he would let her do so and when she was revelling in her victory he would strike.

"No," Joanne replied, this time a lot more feisty, "that's too dangerous. Can't you just track her down and warn her?" Blackheart was tempted to run his hand through his hair in utter frustration; this girl was really getting on his nerves now.

"She won't listen," he hissed in reply.

"For some reason I think he's right, Jo," Johnny looked at his daughter earnestly, "from what I've gathered of this woman she's definitely not going to a take a warning seriously."

"You could get killed!" Joanne protested, loud enough to lure Roxanne into the lounge as well.

"What is going on?" she asked groggily, her eyes flitting from Johnny to Blackheart and then to Joanne before they moved back to the Rider.

"Blackheart wants dad to help him lure that woman out because, apparently she's in trouble with Mephistopheles," Joanne replied hurriedly and Blackheart felt like ringing her neck, of course Roxanne would protest as well. Did the Rider have enough strength not to crumble under their pressure?

"I'm going to do it," Johnny replied firmly as he folded his arms, emphasising the finality of his decision. Roxanne merely stared at him for a moment before she shrugged and sauntered off into the passage once more.

"MOM!" Joanne screamed after her, surprised by Roxanne's nonchalance toward the matter.

"It's your father's choice," came her voice, "he's a big boy and he can look after himself." Though, to everyone else , she sounded unaffected by it, Blackheart could clearly hear the worry set deep within her. Obviously she was a stronger woman than he had ever credited her for. Joanne, completely unimpressed, stormed off to her room and evidently slammed her door, the _CRASH!_ echoing through the house.

"That went well," Blackheart commented nonchalantly, not really knowing why he was speaking in the first place.

"Better than I expected," Johnny agreed before letting out a long sigh, "so what's the plan of action?"

"You need to go out crime fighting again," Blackheart replied, "if she is anywhere in this forsaken city she will see you and, if she thinks you are alone, she'll strike."

"And when she does we'll catch her?" finally he was catching up. Blackheart nodded once and Johnny got up to ready himself, returning a moment later and the two of them disappeared into the night. They returned the next morning having had absolutely no luck, not once did they even spotted anything that could have distinctly resembled Titanium.

"You didn't find her?" Roxanne called from the kitchen where she was busy making breakfast for the family. Joanne was nowhere to be seen and Blackheart guessed that she was still busy sulking somewhere.

"Not a sign of her," Johnny flopped down at the kitchen table and Blackheart took that as his chance to go scouting alone; perhaps she would be more active during the day. For the rest of the day he continued searching, checking the most obvious places for an effective hideout but still there was absolutely no sign of her. Again, hadn't he known any better he would have suspected she did not even exist, merely a figment of his imagination. Unless his father had gotten a hold of her. Immediately Blackheart teleported down into hell but he could not sense his father's presence there; he was definitely still on earth, reeking absolute havoc.

"Where the hell are you, Titanium?" Blackheart muttered in utter annoyance. Once more she was out of his reach and he could do nothing about it.

Mephistopheles' POV

Mephistopheles followed Titanium at a distance through the crowds, waiting for the opportune moment to attack and destroy her. Unfortunately, it was too busy in the part of town she was now wandering through. Mephistopheles glanced around, looking for his pesky son but could see him nowhere. Apparently he did not care if she died or not; had he honestly allowed himself to think any different? He turned his attention back to Titanium and frowned inwardly: what was she doing in the middle of the town anyway? She suddenly came to a stop and he watched her body become rigid, her eyes flitting to one of the roadside hawkers who threw something into the air before catching it again, repeating the act numerous times. Mephistopheles moved a little closer and realised the hawker was playing with two magnets which, as he threw them into the air, clasped back together before falling into his awaiting hands. What about the hawker fascinated or threatened her to the point where she concentrated completely on him and nothing else?

"You want to buy?" the hawker purred at her before, unexpectedly, hurling the magnets at her. Titanium seemed to snap out of whatever world she was on and quickly caught them. That was when the strangest thing happened; her face contorted into a look of absolute agony as she dropped the magnets. Her hands were blood red and Mephistopheles had to blink numerous times to make sure he was seeing accurately; were those boils which were forming on her once clear skin? He quickly moved his eyes back to her just in time to see how sick she actually looked; her skin had become pasty and perspiration broke out on her forehead. Shakily she turned and hurriedly moved back into the crowd with only one visual difference; she now seemed completely confused, lost even.

'A weakness to magnetism?' an idea suddenly struck Mephistopheles and he allowed himself a grin; Titanium no longer seemed as impossible to defeat as before. She had such an obvious and dangerous weakness, one that would be completely beneficial to him.

'Enjoy your last few hours of freedom,' he thought giddily. Once he found a large enough magnet all that was left for him to do was to hunt her down and recapture her. Of course that would not be too difficult because wherever his Rider was, Titanium would eventually pitch up there. Now it was just the task of finding a single supersized magnet and Mephistopheles believed he knew the perfect place to find one.

Joanne's POV

For practically the whole day Joanne did not see Blackheart with a wink of an eye, he simply just did not show himself. Her father had gone back to bed, exhausted from the night before, and her mother had left for work just after eight that morning. She wandered around the house bored out of her mind and cursed Roxanne for making her promise she would stay home with her father.

"_Just in case that woman comes back,"_ had been her mother's words and Joanne had to grudgingly agree. Leaving Johnny alone at home while he slept would definitely be dangerous and though she barely knew him she did not want anything to happen to him. If only she could have some sort of company; the house was just too quiet. As if he had heard her silent wish, Blackheart appeared in a puff of black smoke making the room a few degrees colder than normal.

"I can never get used to that," she commented conversationally, "you'd be quite useful to have around in the hotter summer months." Blackheart looked at her saying nothing in return. If Joanne was not mistaken, it looked as though he was worried about something. Could he possibly be that worried about Titanium?

'I get the feeling that those two are more than rivals even if they don't want to admit it,' Joanne thought to herself. It was quite fascinating considering the fact that there could be a mutual interest between the two other than that of just fighting.

"You didn't find her, did you?" Joanne asked softly as she got up and approached him. Maybe there was little work to do for her if he already had learnt the basics of affection? It was only left to her to get him to show it...

"Not even a glimpse of her," Blackheart replied and she guessed he was trying to sound emotionless. He definitely was not succeeding.

"She'll turn up," her hands were sweating and her heart racing away in her chest as she continued to move toward him. What she was doing was probably dangerous but she had to at least give it a try. With a single shaking hand, she slowly reached out and gently touched his shoulder in a comforting gesture. She expected him to retaliate at any moment but, to her utmost surprise, it never did happen. Joanne felt him shift and, at a snail's pace, he turned to face her with the softest look she had ever seen in his eyes.

"Who will get to her first?" Blackheart asked, seemingly earnest as she dropped her arm to her side once more.

"You really are worried aren't you?" sympathy was all she could feel toward him and she clung desperately to the tender moment they were sharing; it would not happen again in the near future. Joanne stepped even closer to him and spontaneously flung her arms around him in a bear hug, shocking them both.

"It's all going to turn out fine, really it will," she whispered as she let go and gave him a huge grin. He might not have returned her caring gesture but he had not retaliated either, which meant she was definitely making headway.

"Joanne?" she turned to her father expectantly, embarrassment filling her face.

"What the hell do you think you are doing?" he demanded, fury clouding his eyes as he stepped toward her.

"There's no need to be so harsh, he's standing right-," Joanne swung around to point at Blackheart but found he was missing once more. Perfect.

"We warned you about how dangerous he was and you still go and socialize with him as if he's your best buddy? He could kill you without even thinking twice about it!" Johnny started his lecture and automatically she turned herself off mentally. Yes, she knew it was dangerous to converse with Blackheart but she could not have cared less for her father's words. He had not given a damn about her for the first sixteen years of her life so why should he care all of a sudden?

"Save it," Joanne interrupted him, she was not going to stand for his nonsense, "really, dad, you haven't been around all that much so why should I suddenly believe you 'care'?" she did not wait for an answer but instead just pressed passed him and shut her bedroom door. She had not been in there for more than a second when Blackheart appeared.

"They're right," was all he said to her and it took Joanne a moment to actually realize what he was talking about.

"Please don't," Joanne flopped down on her bed, replacing her look of confusion for one of disinterest, "I really don't care how dangerous everyone says you are. You've done nothing wrong to me thus far so why should I avoid you?" she stretched out comfortably all the while looking at him with sparkling, friendly eyes.

"I am what I am. By rights you shouldn't trust me even if I haven't done anything to you," Blackheart replied simply.

"Oh pooh!" Joanne waved his reply away as she looked at the ceiling instead, "that's not how I work." She desperately hoped that her accepting approach was actually getting to him, softening him up a little bit. Joanne dared to take a peek in his direction and noticed he was staring out the window, his eyes completely glazed over. Blackheart definitely had a lot more depth to him than he actually let on; it was not all about evil and world domination to him. A sudden idea came to her and she quickly got up again, approaching him with a rapid pace. Before she could chicken out she wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him, sending a silent prayer to heaven that she had not just signed her death warrant.

Titanium's POV

After her sickening experience with the earthly creation known as a magnet, Titanium had unknowingly travelled directly to the Rider's residence. Only once the sickened feeling had vanished from the pit of her stomach and her head had finally started to settle and clear up did she realize where she was. Why had she come here? Titanium nearly let her mind once more indulge in the memories but was quick enough to stop them before they could form fully. She was here to scout, to distract herself from the horrifying experience she had just encountered. Quickly shaking herself back into stealth mode, Titanium sneakily approached the house before her. Of course, hiding would be a lot more difficult considering the fact that the sun was still shining and she would stand out like a sore thumb in between the shrubbery.

'Concentrate and you will be fine,' she thought as she peered through the lounge window. The unknown female was standing in the middle of the room looking bored out of her mind. She stood alone for a few minutes, a number of emotions passing across her pretty face, before Blackheart appeared in the room. She said something to him but Titanium could hear nothing, the walls of the house were a lot thicker than that of a bus and she dared not go any closer. She continued speaking and though he had not replied the first time he did say something in return to whatever it was she had said. When Blackheart was finished she started to approach him, placing a hand on his shoulder as she said something and when he turned to face her she wrapped her arms around him in a hug. Although the picture sickened her, feeling like a punch to the gut, Titanium forced herself to continue watching. Who was this woman and what sort of effect did she have on him?

"Joanne!" the Rider had silently appeared in the lounge, he looked at the woman furiously. Though the words exchanged between them were heated she could still not hear what they were saying. Forgetting about stealth, Titanium approached the house intent on hearing whatever it was they were shouting at one another.

"Save it. Really, dad, you haven't been around all that much so why should I suddenly believe you 'care'?" Joanne then pushed passed the Rider and disappeared from view. So the unknown woman was actually the Rider's daughter?

'How interesting,' Titanium thought as she moved along the house hoping to find Joanne's bedroom window. Could she perhaps use that information to her advantage? What better way to destroy the Rider than crush his own flesh and blood? The psychological damage it would leave would be a much better punishment than the relief that he would get if she killed him. Titanium hesitated in bringing an innocent life into the battle though; Joanne had done nothing wrong and was not connected to the revenge she wanted. Yes, it would be more fulfilling but the ending of innocence disturbed her conscience on a greater scale than she cared to admit.

'Stick to the original plan,' she thought decidedly before halting at the right window. Titanium tried to swallow the lump in her throat as she took in what she was seeing; Blackheart was in Joanne's room while she was spread out on the bed. She tried to grab a hold of her rampant imagination and concentrated on the scene before her. A few more words were exchanged between them and Titanium was forced to duck when Blackheart looked out the window. With her heart beating in her throat, she slowly peeped in the window again and immediately wished she had not. They were kissing. The sight had sucker punched all the air from Titanium's body and her legs gave way underneath her forcing her to fall to the ground. Like a fish out of water, she gaped unsuccessfully trying to get air into her stiff, shocked body. Her mind had gone completely blank except for the twisted image which had forcefully imprinted itself on her mind's eye. Titanium's eyes dropped to her blistering hands as the sickened feeling from earlier increased drastically, forcing her to double over. She had broken out into a cold sweat and it felt as though time had slowed down, her heartbeat ricocheted in her ears mixing with the sound of her laboured breath. Slowly the shock twisted and mutated into a deformed type of uncontrollable rage, her heart pumping the newfound energy into her starved limbs. Titanium arose from the ground and stared into the window with unnaturally icy eyes as complete anger and darkness enveloped her in a comforting, revenge-seeking blanket of hateful emotions.

"Tonight you will die, bitch," Titanium hissed in a voice which tipped on the edge of becoming inhuman. She took no notice of the fact that Blackheart was no longer in the room or the fact that Joanne was curled up on her bed crying, the wall neatly cracked where she had collided with it. She cared no more for plans or innocence; the most painful revenge was the only revenge she wanted and she would have it or she would die trying. Tonight she would take out two birds with one stone. Or would it be better called one sword? Titanium took to the sky not knowing that, with her loss of humanity, she had also lost her greatest weapon and source of protection; strategy. A fatal mistake.

Blackheart's POV

Blackheart could feel his anger flare at the little brat's cheek and audacity. Who did she think she was? With almost all his strength he shoved her off and she slammed loudly into the wall. He knew the room had become even colder than before as his temper spilled over.

"Don't ever do that again," Blackheart could almost feel his features distort as he spoke, apparently the girl needed to be reminded of who he was and what he was capable of, "or you will end up a corpse." She would know to take his words not as a threat but as a definite promise. He teleported away from her room and did not return to the residence for what remained of the day. If he had then the girl would definitely have not lived to see the following day. Only once he had completely gotten a check on his temper did he finally make his way back. He found everyone in the lounge, the atmosphere was definitely tense and he had suspicion as to why it was so. The brat had probably ratted him out.

"Good, you're here," Johnny's voice was completely neutral but he refused to make eye-contact with anyone, instead he chose to stare at the blank flat screen television, "there are a few things we need to-." That was when Blackheart spotted her outside the house, her eyes strangely icier and more luminous than usual. The wind whipped through her platinum curls and made the flowing black dress she had on dance around her legs. The Rider was saying something, angrily but all Blackheart could do was stare at Titanium. He had never before seen her that enraged and deadly, everything about her screamed dangerous to her surroundings. A clock somewhere struck eight o'clock and he caught a glimpse of the glinting sword which had suddenly formed in her hand. She was going to strike. Before he could think of warning the people around him, Titanium hurled the sword with enough ferocity to put a bullet to shame.

'Her aim is off,' Blackheart thought as he watched the sword flying in completely the opposite direction to the Rider. It then occurred to him who _was_ sitting in the path of the sword; Joanne. So Titanium knew who Joanne was and had cleverly decided to kill her instead of the Rider. It was something Blackheart himself would have done if he were in her position and he gave her credit for picking the most effective form of revenge. Unfortunately, he would not let her get the revenge she seemed to want so badly. The sword shattered the window and only when it was but millimetres from Joanne's face did he extended his hand and stop it in midflight. Joanne let out a gut-wrenching squeal as she hurled herself away from the blade which had, seconds ago, threatened to skewer her to the wall. Johnny and Roxanne were at her side in seconds but Blackheart merely dropped his arm to his side never once moving his eyes from Titanium's.

"What are you doing?" Blackheart spoke to her but she did not reply, only stared back at him seemingly unaffected by his little rescue stunt. Deciding to risk it, he teleported outside before he started to walk toward her, stopping mere inches away. Titanium did not budge, she drew no weapons and did not even so much as blink.

"What are you trying to prove?" Blackheart spoke again and he watched numerous unidentifiable emotions pass through her eyes before they became deadly once more.

"The Rider will go down," was all she said in reply.

"Why do you want him dead?"

"Why do you care?" she answered in return. Blackheart had to admit she did have a bit of a point but he would never admit that to her.

"Leave the Rider to me, it has nothing to do with you anyway," he snapped instead.

"You failed previously," Titanium smirked as she reminded him of his downfall, something he had expected from her when she had first found out. Something was different about Titanium but he could not put his finger on it, all he could tell was that something about her aura was off.

"I will not-," Blackheart started but he did not have time to finish his sentence; the air had suddenly become colder as his father's presence approached them. He reached out and pulled Titanium behind him, barely in time to save her from his father's eager hands.

"What did you do that for?" Titanium demanded hotly before she saw Mephistopheles standing in the shadows of the tree she had just moments ago been under.

"Hand her over," he said in a deadly calm voice.

"Not a chance," Blackheart replied firmly. From behind, a burst of light and wave of warmth engulfed them as the flaming Ghost Rider stepped in next to Blackheart.

"Well, well," Mephistopheles laughed softly, "former enemies do tend to come together, don't they?" Was he implying to Blackheart and the Rider or to Blackheart and Titanium? Blackheart could not care, all he knew he cared about was keeping Titanium away from his father until he was able to interrogate her.

"Then again, you've always wanted to be more than enemies, didn't you?" Mephistopheles was looking directly at Titanium, disgust plastered all over his face. She remained passive even under his piercing gaze, completely ignoring his comment. A sly smile slithered onto his face which made Blackheart tense up as he wondered what his father was going to do, what he was planning.

"Tell me, Titanium, what do you think of magnets?" his smile grew even wider as she visibly stiffened leaving Blackheart feeling completely confused. Mephistopheles gave a hearty laugh as he disappeared in a puff of black smoke, the temperature again returning to a more bearable level. Blackheart did not like the situation they now found themselves in and knew his father was going to return. Soon. As if Mephistopheles had read his mind, he reappeared behind them and hurled two large magnets at her. They immediately attached themselves to her and she became as pale as a ghost, swaying dangerously. Before either the Rider or Blackheart could think of reacting, he wrapped his arms around Titanium's waist and disappeared once more leaving the night a deadly quiet.

"Well that can't be good," Johnny commented looking like his normal self once more. Blackheart said nothing as he too disappeared into the darkness; the hunt was on and the stakes were extremely high. He needed to track Titanium down before Mephistopheles had a chance to do any of the sadistic things Blackheart knew he had planned for her.

'Hang on, Titanium,' he thought, hoping against hope that she would somehow be safe until he could find her. He had no idea what effects magnetism would have on her but he knew it had to be horrific enough for Mephistopheles to accept it as a method of torture. Blackheart had no idea how his father had come across such personal information that not even he, who had been battling her for years, knew. Whatever the case was, it did not matter, not as much as tracking her down did. He would find her even if it was the last thing he ever did.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

Titanium's POV

The moment Mephistopheles had mentioned magnets Titanium had known she was in definite trouble; the creep had witnessed her earlier experience in the centre of town. She could barely make out anything as the two magnets attached to her arms wreaked havoc on her cellular structure, displacing the tiny metal molecules present in her build. Like millions of tiny white hot needles, the pain clouded her vision and made her slip in and out of consciousness as it engulfed her mind completely. The place she was in seemed to be a yard of some sort but she could not be a hundred percent sure; her senses were completely inactive as wave upon wave of nausea and pain washed over her.

"Not so fearsome now, hey?" his voice was far off and sounded as though Titanium was submerged in water. She could not bring herself to reply and instead just let him lead her to wherever it was he was taking her. Something worse was waiting for her at the end of her journey, that much she knew just from all her experiences with Mephistopheles. They came to a stop and he ripped the magnets of from her skin. Titanium screamed out as she collapsed to the floor, her legs refusing to carry her another step further. Hot tears spilled from her eyes and she rolled onto her back hoping to somehow ease the worst feeling she had ever experienced in her lifetime. A shadow enclosed her and Titanium attempted to make out what it was but her vision was even more blurred from both the unbearable pain and the unending tears.

"You thought that was bad?" Mephistopheles' voice floated towards her, "Let's see how much you like this." There was a moment of absolute calm and Titanium knew it was the deadly peace before the storm, what was coming would probably rip her to shreds mentally and emotionally if not physically too. A light breeze tickled her blistering skin and she revelled in it, hoping it would last but it ended soon after. The slow throbbing pain in every inch in her body became magnified by approximately a hundred times as an even greater force of magnetism was exerted on her already worn out figure. Instead of having the tiny metal molecules displaced, it felt as though they were all being ripped from her body as the rest of her cells were slowly torn to shreds. She knew she was screaming but she could not hear it, she saw nothing but white and felt nothing other than the excruciating pain which enwrapped her body which was being broken apart at molecular level. How long would she last? The torture seemed to go on for years before something cool washed over her extinguishing the flames of agony and soothing her burnt and blistering skin. Titanium knew she had died, there was no other explanation for the state of complete peace and numbness she was experiencing.

'Death,' she whispered into the white nothingness which surrounded her. It was completely different from what she had expected it to be like but still she thought she liked it. What would happen next though? Titanium watched as darkness slowly started to infiltrated her bright white surroundings. She wanted to run from the foreboding blackness which was rapidly approaching her but she could not move and instead just shut her eyes and waited for whatever was going to happen. Titanium suddenly felt as though she was falling and, at the same time, stretching out and growing longer. Both feelings came to an abrupt end leaving her feeling numb once more and Titanium willed herself to open her eyes but she found they were as heavy as lead weights. Her entire body felt like a complete dead weight, only slowly becoming lighter and lighter as time stretched passed her. Eventually she felt like she could open her eyes and she did just that, wrenching them open with as much power as she could muster. What Titanium saw, however, was something she least expected.

Blackheart's POV

Different sections of hell appeared and disappeared as Blackheart teleported from one place to the next hoping desperately to either find Titanium or some clue to where she could be.

"Boss?" Gressel watched as the black smoke barely made an appearance before it vanished again. There was a brief pause before Blackheart reappeared, a look of utter impatience on his face.

"What?" he demanded coldly knowing he had little time to converse with a brainless goon who could probably not be of any help to his search.

"Boss," Gressel repeated daftly, grinning like a baboon, "I thought you wouldn't come back."

"What do you want?" already he was being surrounded by darkness as he prepared to teleport to his next destination.

"Where's that metal girl? Titanium or something like that?" Gressel scratched his chin trying to look intelligent but Blackheart saw and heard none of it. Realization had just hit him and he felt like bashing his head against the wall; how could he not have remembered?

_Magnets..._

Obviously, Titanium's weakness had to be magnetism! Magnets were _attracted_ to metal and Blackheart could only imagine what sort of effect they would have on someone made of metal. Where were there lots of magnets? Or maybe a single large magnet? If he could only answer those two questions then he would probably be able to hunt her down, there were, after all, only a few places that contained either enough magnets or a large enough magnet to satisfy his father.

"Gressel?" Blackheart turned to the earth elemental before him. Gressel ignored his boss's call, continuously scratching his chin as he attempted to figure something out. He was muttering under his breath and Blackheart let out a sigh of utter annoyance.

"Gressel!" his voice distorted as his temper flared, effectively catching Gressel's attention and he swung to face Blackheart, "Glad I finally have your attention, idiot."

"Sorry, boss," Gressel failed to make eye-contact and Blackheart guessed he was probably thanking his lucky stars that he had not been incinerated.

"Where can I find large magnets?" Blackheart tried to enquire nonchalantly.

"A scrap yard, why?" he looked confused by Blackheart's enquiry, "Do you think that metal girl will be attracted to the magnets?" Gressel snickered at his own little joke but he did not join the elemental. The way he called Titanium 'metal girl' annoyed him beyond compare but he did not stay to correct Gressel, after all; he had given Blackheart the perfect place to start looking for her. Without anymore delay, he teleported to the nearest scrap yard where his ears were immediately met with a shrill scream which echoed eerily through the night.

"Titanium," Blackheart muttered in disdain, he had probably arrived not a moment too soon. He started to move in the direction of the screaming with more haste than he had ever shown. Tall towers of metal became coloured blurs as he sped through the scrap yard, his eyes searching everywhere for Titanium. Finally, Blackheart came to the source of the noise and what he saw brought a deep frown to his face as he came to an abrupt halt. Squirming in the dirt, Titanium's face was a picture of pure agony, her skin had gone blood red and blisters covered the exposed parts of her body. Hanging above her was a heavy duty magnet with lighter pieces of metal plastered to it, little bits still randomly flying toward it. Blackheart noticed that Titanium was suspended slightly and underneath her, littering the ground, were patches of blood which screamed out at him almost as loudly as her own voice did.

"You bastard," Blackheart hissed as his eyes settled on Mephistopheles, who was standing right next to the machine which securely held the oversized magnet. It was time to end his father's sadistic actions, he had seen and heard enough. He merely glanced at the cover over the machine's motor and immediately it groaned before spluttering once and shutting down. Mephistopheles turned to glare at the machine, cursing it profusely but before he had time to realize it had been Blackheart who had sabotaged his plan, a bright light appeared above the scrap yard.

"What the-?" Mephistopheles shouted over the loud humming which had appeared seconds after the blinding light. Blackheart kept his eyes trained on as much of the light as he could and was rewarded with a glimpse of a descending male silhouette. The figure shot directly toward where Titanium was and he followed it; there was no way in hell that he was letting her out of his sight again. The light engulfed Blackheart and he found it difficult to see where he was going, there was also no sight of the mysterious silhouette or even of Titanium. The humming suddenly became louder as a gale force wind struck the earth and threatened to whip him off his feet, numerous metal towers collapsing in its wake. As quickly as it had come, the light disappeared in a single flash taking with it the wind and noise leaving the night strangely dark and eerily quiet. Little colourful spots danced around Blackheart's vision and he blinked numerous times in quick succession to see if he could get rid of them. Once he could clearly see again he allowed his eyes to scan the ground surrounding him but, where Titanium had been, there was nothing to be found but the patches of blood.

"What the hell did you do this time?" Mephistopheles was suddenly beside Blackheart, anger surrounding him like a thick protective cover.

"Are you sure it's not what _YOU_ did?" Blackheart replied vehemently.

"Am I supposed to believe that?" Mephistopheles was quick to reply and his anger convinced Blackheart that his father might actually have been innocent. He wondered if Titanium had been under so much strain that she had just disintegrated. Was that how extra-terrestrial beings died? Blackheart was reminded of the male silhouette he had seen and immediately scrapped the idea of death. Someone had come to rescue Titanium and he could not help but wonder who it was and what they wanted with her. Blackheart did not even notice his father's absence beside him as he looked into the clear night sky with despair present deep within his chest. Titanium was gone again and this time he had absolutely no idea where she was or even where she could be. Blackheart did not even know if she was in any actual trouble or what this unknown hero wanted. For the first time in ages, he did not know what to do or where to start. How could he if there were just too many unanswered questions?

Everyone in the Rider's residence was awake unnaturally late as Blackheart related the story in as much detail as he could. When he finished speaking, Joanne was quick to speak from her spot on the sofa.

"You saw the light?" she snickered mockingly but stopped abruptly when the Rider elbowed her. Blackheart wondered if she was petty enough to still be sulking before shrugging it off, he honestly did not need or want her friendship anyway.

"So what does this mean?" Johnny looked away from his daughter.

"I don't know," was all Blackheart could say in reply.

"Do you have no idea who could have pulled such a stunt? Maybe someone with a helicopter, Johnny?" Roxanne added, entering from the kitchen.

"Yeah? What about a helicopter?" he looked at Blackheart with sparkling eyes.

"It couldn't have been," Blackheart shook his head as he turned his back on them, "the wind only came just before the thing left. If it was a helicopter you would have felt the wind, seen the light and heard it all at once before the thing even arrived. Plus, no helicopter could carry a light that bright." Silence followed as each person searched through their own minds for a possible solution but none could think of any logical explanation.

"What are we going to do?" Roxanne asked in a small voice. Blackheart did nothing to reply as he approached the window feeling, for the first time, a deep sadness welling in his chest. When had he started seeing Titanium as anything but an enemy? He could not answer that question but he did know that he did not look lightly upon failure. Blackheart felt as though it was his responsibility to keep her out of harm's way and by letting a complete stranger take her, he had failed. He lay one hand on the window and clenched the other at his side as he stared at his reflection in the window; somehow Titanium had changed him. It pained Blackheart that he had been so blind to it over the years, she had always had that effect on him and he had never recognized it.

'I can see now but is it too late?' Blackheart thought solemnly. World domination did not matter to him anymore, neither did taking over his father's kingdom and destroying the Rider. All he wanted to do was find Titanium. Once he found her, however, how would he be able to reveal his discovery to her? Would she laugh it off? Would she use it to her advantage? Somehow he doubted the very idea; her intense need to get revenge on the Rider had some effect on his decision. Would he allow himself the hope that she might have seen the same thing? No...the risk of disappointment was just too great. Blackheart could not let himself be distracted by his current emotional state, that was something he could sort out after he had found Titanium. Only afterward would he allow himself to think of a possible solution. If he ever managed to find her...

Titanium's POV

After blinking numerous times, splotches of colour infiltrated the infinite blackness which made up all that Titanium could see. She could feel the softness of a mattress beneath her and silk sheets covered her burning body. Where was she and how did she get there? Titanium doubted that Mephistopheles would have willingly let her go unless Blackheart had come to rescue her. She felt her heart jump at the thought but immediately crushed the hope that he felt something more for her; it was ridiculous and impossible. Movement to her right caught her attention and she attempted to focus so she could gather some information on her rescuer.

"Close the window," said a velvety male voice, "it seems to be irritating her." Someone immediately reacted to the male's instruction and she felt them reach over the bed to quickly shut the window to her left. The breeze she had been oblivious to suddenly disappeared and she heard the _whoosh _of the curtains falling back into place. Titanium guessed that she was in an unfamiliar place; she knew nowhere that had proper windows, curtains and such a comfortable bed.

"Sire, I think she is waking," the person who had closed the window was also a male and she could feel him staring. She had the greatest urge to tell him off but restrained herself, she knew too little about her rescuers to assess her situation. Had their intention even been rescuing her or were they an even greater threat than Mephistopheles?

"Let her wake then," the first male purred, "the quicker she does the quicker we can complete our business in this forsaken place!" Titanium flinched inwardly, immediately distrusting her 'rescuers'. They could keep their business, she needed to get away from them as quickly as possible so she could begin her recovery. Slowly, carefully, she opened her eyes and took in the darkened room around her. Titanium quickly decided that her best escape option would be the window. After all, what was the chance that they could fly?

"Do you think she will accept, sire?" the second male enquired as he stepped away from the bed and into the darkness which infested the room.

"She may," his voice was now a little louder, more excited, "what else does she have to live for on this planet?" Titanium gulped as she took in their conversation; it was time to get moving before she completely lost her nerve. As quickly as she could, Titanium flung herself out of the bed and reached for the window but before she could wrench it open she was lying on her back on the carpeted floor. Two shadowed faces peered down at her and she immediately went into defensive, flinging two short diamond daggers at them as she sprung up once more.

"Calm down, princess!" the first male commanded and Titanium paused briefly, his velvety voice held a certain authority that made her automatically want to obey him.

"How dare you order me around and call me pet names? I do not know you and you do not know me!" Titanium snarled in return as her anger flared.

"It is not a pet name, it is your title," he stepped into the light and immediately Titanium's breath was knocked from her body. The male was tall with broad shoulders, had platinum blond hair with the deepest mossy green eyes she come across and full pink lips. He was clothed in a royal blue sleeveless trench coat type thing which left his torso exposed but tied at the waist a single white button. The tail of the jacket hung all the way to his feet and barely exposed the fitted black pants and pointed black boots underneath. His torso glimmered in the dim light and Titanium had to admit that he was well built with a perfect six pack.

"Who the hell are you?" Titanium demanded as she returned to her defensive state, guessing that he was trying to distract her by bedazzling her.

"King Chrysos of the kingdom Polytima on the Planet Metallo ," he said with dignity before adding in a gentler voice, "your home."

"My-?" Titanium broke off, she had been waiting for this day to come since she had first appeared on earth. Even when she was accepted into hell she had always dreamt of going home, of returning to her people.

"Yes, and you are Princess Titanio of the kingdom Ischyros, neighbouring state to my own and also my rightful queen," Chrysos took a step toward her but Titanium took no notice, she was too overwhelmed by the information she had just received. She was a princess?

"Your parents had to send you away all those years ago because of your unique gift. Being able to control a metal and precious stone is unheard of and the people wanted you destroyed," Chrysos continued in a voice that was just above a mere whisper, "but now there is a new law and unique beings such as yourself are being rightfully accepted. So I have come to fetch you, to take you home where you will become my queen." He was now standing behind her with both hands on her shoulders, speaking directly into her right ear. Titanium knew she was getting gooseflesh from his touch as she imagined herself going home, being royalty and never having another worry in her life. It was the perfect escape. Flashes of her life on earth managed to intervene with her fantasy and immediately she felt a stab of guilt; earth was all she knew and trusted. She did not know this 'King Chrysos' so how could she believe his story? How did she know that he was telling the truth? If Blackheart had taught her anything it was to trust in what she knew she could believe. And still, she had a duty to fulfil. How could she leave before she had completed it?

"How can I trust you? I do not know you or know what your true intentions are," Titanium whirled around and shoved the hilt of her trusty diamond sword into his lower abdomen before springing back and putting distance between them.

"I healed you, princess," Chrysos took a single deep breath as he straightened himself out, "I also knew you would ask me such a question and that is why I brought you a long lost childhood memory." He extended his hand and the other male in the room handed him a small golden box which he held out to her. Titanium glared at him, distrust planted deep in her eyes, and did not take a single step forward. Chrysos, sensing her hesitance, instead put the box on the bedside table along with a smaller silver cube.

"I will give you a day to consider my offer, princess," he smiled tentatively, "If you accept, place your thumb and index finger in the grooves present on the small silver cube. I will then return to fetch you but if you decline, command the cube to self-destruct. Tomorrow night at this time the cube will automatically self-destruct. I must warn you, however, that once you have declined you will never be able to return. You will not be welcome. Think carefully about what you plan to do, princess." In a bright flash, the two men disappeared leaving the room eerily silent and empty. Long after they had left, Titanium remained in her defensive position merely staring at the two foreign objects on table. Slowly she took a single step toward them before she froze, scanning her surroundings. When she was certain nothing was going to happen, Titanium put away her swords and walked to the bedside table.

"The gold one first," she muttered as she reached out for it, her hand sweating. Titanium slipped the lid off and it fell to the floor as her eyes connected with what was in the box. With shaking hands she lifted the delicate chain from the velvety cushion. It could easily have been mistaken for a necklace but, the two shiny clips on either side convinced her that it was actually some sort of head wear, probably a crown on her home planet. The pattern, shaped as a triangle, included numerous silver spirals which ended in either a small diamond or sapphire. Surprisingly it was very light and when Titanium held it to her forehead and looked in the mirror she immediately knew that she recognised it. In her minds eyes she saw a younger version of herself standing in full-length mirror with the very same crown on her head while a woman, her mother, applauded her from behind. As the picture faded before her eyes Titanium knew that Chrysos was speaking the truth.

_Midnight_

_Not a sound from the pavement_

_Has the moon lost her memory?_

_She is smiling alone_

_In the lamplight_

_The withered leaves collect at my feet_

_And the wind begins to moan_

Titanium glanced down at her black number, the type of clothes she had always prided herself in since she had, so long ago, taken a liking to Blackheart. Why should she wear it now? There was no point anymore. Slowly, almost hoping that something would stop her, she started to peel the layers of clothing off merely dropping them on the floor like forgotten rags. She began to wipe off her heavy make-up, the only mask she had ever been able to hide behind and looked at herself in the mirror once more. Her cold and hating exterior had melted away to reveal a different person; someone who was soft, caring and feminine. Her hair flowed freely down her shoulders in golden waves, her eyes were placid, laced with emotions making them seem like a calm yet deep body of water. Her expression was sombre and her peaches in cream complexion now looked completely natural, not an eerie contrast to the rest of her features.

_Memory_

_All alone in the moonlight_

_I can smile happy your days_

_Life was beautiful then_

_I remember the time I knew what happiness is_

_Let the memory live again_

She looked back at the garments scattered on the floor as she wrapped a fluffy bathrobe around her and for a moment let the memories of the past overwhelm her. The day she had met Blackheart, become rivals with him, fighting him, loving him... The pictures danced before her as hot tears flowed down her cheeks and she collapsed to the floor where she stayed for a countless amount of time. Titanium was not meant to be like the other demons in hell, it was not who she was and that was why she had been weak enough to fall for someone so unattainable. It was time now though to find her strength and to grasp that which was attainable to her with both hands. With her body still shaking from the sobs, Titanium lifted herself off the ground and crawled toward the little silver cube which stood glimmering on the table, beckoning her.

_Every streetlamp seems to beat_

_A fatalistic warning_

_Someone mutters and the streetlamp gutters_

_And soon it will be morning_

Titanium picked the cube up as she lifted herself completely off the floor. Unknowingly she had already made-up her mind when she had seem them together, even if she did not know that her people had been searching for her. The picture of them kissing appeared in her mind; a wispy, faded form of its former self and she felt the dagger, which had pierced her heart earlier, twist. Titanium grasped her chest with her free hand as she let out a little gasp; the wound was still so raw and painful. She gently caressed each side of the cube and, when she found the two indents, she placed the designated fingers on them. It was time to go home where she would hopefully heal, where she could start all over again.

_Daylight_

_I must wait for the sunrise_

_I must think of a new life_

_And I mustn't give in_

_When the dawn comes_

_Tonight will be a memory too_

_And a new day will begin_

Titanium pressed her fingers into the indents. The effect was immediate; the cube shot out of her hand as a line of light separated it into two different halves. It split along the line and opened up so that two perfect squares of light faced her. Titanium watched as the light surrounded her, lifting her off the ground, and engulfed her completely. After a moment there was a bright flash and the two empty halves of the former cube clattered to the ground. She stepped over them and stared at herself in the full-length mirror, completely in awe of what she was seeing. The bathrobe had disappeared and in its place was a white tight fitting dress which stopped just above the knee. Over it was a white trench coat which came down to her ankles and on her feet was a set of white knee-high boots. On the ends of the sleeves and tail of the trench coat were silver spirals which mimicked the ones on the crown. Slowly, Titanium put the crown on and clipped it into place before she looked at her new self, her real self.

_Burnt out ends of smoky days_

_The still cold smell of morning_

_A street lamp dies, another night is over_

_Another day is dawning_

Chrysos appeared behind her in another flash of dazzling light, taking only a moment to admire her before he approached.

"I'm glad you decided to come," he murmured in his seductively velvety voice, "you look beautiful." Titanium ignored his compliment, Blackheart kept intruding in her thoughts of a new beginning so she decided she needed to see him before she could properly say goodbye to her old life.

"Is something wrong, princess?" Chrysos purred as he flicked the hair out of her face.

"I need to say goodbye to someone first," she replied with a steady voice, surprising herself. Titanium felt anything but steady and confident. He merely nodded and opened the window for them, allowing her to take off first. Her wings were still black but already they were starting to fade, becoming lighter and lighter as each moment passed. Titanium attempted to concentrate on flying to the one place she knew Blackheart would be; the Rider's residence. Chrysos flew silently by her side and in a matter of minutes they arrived, landing with grace in the garden.

"She's here! Blackheart!" someone screamed from inside the house but he was already outside, taking in her new appearance with confusion. She attempted to smile, her naturally pink lips parting ever so slightly.

"They've come to fetch me," Titanium whispered as a breeze blew around them, "I'm finally going home." Blackheart's eyes searched hers and she was shocked to see a number of emotions pass through them. Already the sun was starting to rise, splattering the horizon with a number of reds, oranges, pinks and purples.

"Princess, the portal is ready to take us to the ship," Chrysos commented from behind and they both glanced at him before looking back at each other. This was both the end and the beginning for them both even if, secretly, they did not want it to be so. Titanium looked over her shoulder and nodded for Chrysos to go, hesitantly he obeyed. As he stepped through the invisible portal, ripples spread throughout the air around him and he was gone.

"Titanium-," Blackheart had finally worked up the nerve to speak but she interrupted him, singing softly:

"_Touch me,_

_It is so easy to leave me_

_All alone with the memory_

_Of my days in the sun_

_If you touch me,_

_You'll understand what happiness is"_ he attempted to reach out for her but she backed up slowly, stopping a step away when she whispered, "Look, a new day has begun..." and with that Titanium disappeared into the portal and exited his life, leaving no trace of her existence behind.


End file.
